


Tame your wild, wild heart

by Kezcakes



Category: Shadowhunters (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe, F/F, F/M, M/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-04-03
Updated: 2018-08-14
Packaged: 2019-04-18 00:17:40
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 11,045
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14200784
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Kezcakes/pseuds/Kezcakes
Summary: Magnus Bane has had a troubled passed, and upon advice from his therapist decides to adopt a pair of cats that have had a little trouble in getting homed. But ends up with more than he bargained for.Alec’s life was his job; he lived to work and had little time for much else. He saw the animals at the shelter like family. The only spare time he ever had was always spent with his actual relatives. He was not expecting to meet someone at work that would turn his world upside down.POV from different characters.Includes some OC's. (more pairings to be added later)





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> My first multi-chaptered fic for this universe. Any feedback is greatly appreciated. Hope you enjoy reading.
> 
> Huge thanks to Serinity (http://beyondthehunt.tumblr.com/) for creating amazing artwork for this.

 

 

 

Alec checks his watch and sighs, “sorry buddy, but last one okay?” He picks up the tennis ball that had been not-so-subtly rolled towards his feet, and throws it across the field. A smile falls across his face as he watches the dog excitedly run after it only to place it back at Alec’s feet a few seconds later. Before he has chance to pick the ball up his radio crackles into life. 

“Alec, can you meet me by Beauvale entrance?”

He unclips the radio and holds it to his face to reply, “Be there in five.” Securing the radio he turns his attention back to the dog who was looking at him expectantly wagging his tail, as his eye focus changes from the ball to Alec and back again. Alec pockets the ball and looks apologetically at the confused look donning the collie’s face. “Sorry bud, time to go in.” He walks to the gate and takes out a lead. “Cookie, come here.” The dog obeys, upon catching up to Alec he automatically sits patiently allowing Alec to clip his lead on. Alec takes Cookie back to his room; he gives the dog a quick fuss and a treat before leaving to meet Maia who had summoned him over the radio.

Alec spots Maia instantly across the compound standing next to the doors for Beauvale- where they house the cats looking for a new home. As he nears he notices a worried look donning her face. “Hey, what’d you need me for?”

She shoots him a remorseful smile before explaining, “I’m sorry to ask because I know you’re scheduled for dogs today. But Raj has called in sick and I need someone to fill in for a couple of his appointments.” She flicks through the papers on her clipboard. “Any chance you can meet a Mr Bane in twenty minutes?”

“Okay, what’s he after?”

Maia scans the bit of paper, “all I can tell you is that he’s after a cat.” Alec rolls his eyes at her vagueness.

“You told Hodge that you’re stealing me for a bit?”

Maia chews her lip, “he wasn’t exactly happy about it. But I promised Chinese for lunch.”

Alec chuckles, “I’ll go set up the meeting room then.”

“Thank you so much,” she beams at him before rushing off.

 

Alec heads to the front of site, he enters main reception and nods to the receptionists who are both busy on the phones, before pulling out his keys and opening one of the two meeting rooms. He flicks the light on and shrugs his jacket off placing it over the back of the chair. Alec frowns at the mud and saliva that covers his legs and shrugs. He couldn’t help that he’d been working with the dogs all morning. And there was no way he had time to get changed before the appointment. Alec gathers the relevant paperwork and flops down onto the chair. 

His fingers dance across the keyboard as he logs in. Alec opens the database before reading through Mr Bane’s application form. Maia was right- there wasn’t much to go on. His brows furrow as he reads through the application again, trying to get as feel for the person that he was about to meet. Unfortunately his mind came up blank. Alec’s broken from his thoughts as one of the receptionists knocks on the door. “Mr Bane is here.”

“Thank you Jade, show him in.” Alec stands and tries to make himself appear a bit more presentable. As he looks over at the man, Mr Bane, entering the room his breath catches in his throat. Composing himself he clears his throat and pushed out his first impression of Mr Bane being utterly beautiful and puts his professional head firmly on. He extends a welcoming hand, “Hello Mr Bane, my name is Alec.”

Mr Bane takes his hand with a firm shake, “Hello Alec, please call me Magnus,” he purrs, his gaze wandering down Alec’s form. An eyebrow quirking as it reaches his mud clad legs.

Alec blushes and rubs the back of his neck nervously, “please excuse the state of me. I’ve been with the dogs all morning,” his eyes flicker around the room anxiously; this was definitely not the part of his job he enjoyed the most. “Please take a seat.” His hand waves in the general direction of the chair as Alec sits back down in his. He scans Magnus’ application form one last time before locking eyes with the other man; he can’t help but to gulp as he is met with stunning gold-green eyes. “So you’ve had all the checks done and now we just need to match you up, is that correct?”

“Indeed,” Magnus nods.

“Okay, well I just have a few questions I need to ask you in order to help narrow it down.” 

Magnus nods for Alec to continue. Alec reels off a load of questions ranging from gender preference to lifestyle, tapping keys as Magnus responds. Alec turns the screen so that Magnus can now see it, “these are all the ones that fit your criteria, there’s a fair few there so if you want to have a look through and then make a note of any you either want more information for or would like to meet.”

Magnus scrolls through the different cats a couple of times and only one really stands out, well one pair. He reads the description again of each cat and although one of them sounds a bit difficult he can’t help but feel that it’s the pair that he wants. Happy with the information provided about one of them, the easier one, he decides to ask Alec for some more information on the not so easy one. “This one,” he points to a longhaired blue Persian, “what else can you tell me about him?”

Alec can’t help as his eyebrows shoot up in surprise, Church had been with the centre for a while now, his grumpy demeanour and lack of enthusiasm in getting to know, let alone like, new people had put everyone off. Which Alec always thought was a shame because underneath it all he was just as lovely as his friend and lifelong companion, Chairman Meow. But then Alec was one of the lucky ones that was deemed worthy by Church. “Well I’m going to be totally honest with you here, what that write up fails to say is that half the staff here do anything they can to not have to interact with him; he’s got a reputation for being a grump. Personally I don’t think that description fits him.”

“Oh?” Magnus gestures for Alec to elaborate.

“I think he’s misunderstood, he’s not ‘grumpy’ he’s just a bit choosy about who he wishes to spend his time with.” He lowers his voice to a mumble, “and honestly with some people I can’t blame him.”

“So you get on okay with him?”

“Yeah, you could say that.” Alec smiles, “he’s actually one of my favourites here. He just needs someone who has the time and patience to show him that he can trust them. First meetings he can come across as miserable, granted, but I always think that it makes it more worthwhile getting to know him.”

“Well, in that case, I think I would like to meet Church and his friend,” Magnus finds the name on the screen, “Chairman meow- love that name by the way!”

“Really?” Alec’s face brightens with a smile as Magnus nods enthusiastically. “Great, well uh...just give me a minute to see which room is free and I will take you down to meet them.” Alec excuses himself as he leaves the room.

 

A few moments later Alec returns, “if you want to follow me, I’ll get you settled into the room and then bring the boys in.” Alec leads him down what seems to be a maze of doors and corridors before finally coming to a stop. The door clicks softly behind them with a click. “You can either sit on a chair, or a blanket on the floor, wherever you feel more comfortable.”

“Which do you think would be better for Church?”

Alec blinks away his shock at the question, not used to be people being so considerate of a cats needs. Usually when someone comes to meet a cat they automatically pick the chair- not even a second’s thought on what would be beneficial to the cat. “In my experience I would have to say that he would prefer you to be on the floor, that way he’s less threatened by your size and finds it easier to ‘sneak’ over.”

Magnus nods, “floor it is then!” Alec smiles to himself as he leaves Magnus to get comfy.

Alec enters the cattery and picks up a basket to transport the cats in. “Hey boys, now Church I need you to try and be at least a little polite to this new person,” he opens the door and allows Church to sniff him. After a second of being put off by Alec smelling different to normal- more doggy; he forgives him and rubs against his hand. Happy that Alec now smells better he walks up to the front of the enclosure and allows Alec to place him into the basket alongside his non-biological brother Chairman. “Because if you decide that you like him, he would be interested in taking you home.” He gently pets each cat before he secures the door on the basket shut, “and wouldn’t that be amazing, huh?”

He continues babbling to the cats as he makes his way back to Magnus, telling them about the person they are going to meet, begging them to behave and make a good impression. “Really Church, all that I’m truly asking is that you don’t immediately bite him. Can you do that for me buddy, please?” Letting out a large breath he stops by the door, “here we go then boys.”

Alec places the basket down by the chairs a couple of feet away from Magnus, “now before I let them out I do just need to warn you of a few things.” Magnus makes eye contact and nods that he is listening. “I cannot guarantee that: they will come out of the basket, that you will not get injured, that they will respond in the way you expect them to. However, should they wish to come over to you I do have these to give you,” he hands Magnus a small bag of treats, “but whether they are actually interested in them, again I cannot guarantee that. I need to ask you to please refrain from picking them up, also don’t touch them unless they initiate things first. Is that all okay?”

Magnus nods, “yup, all makes perfect sense to me.”

“Great,” Alec smiles as he bends down and opens the door; he then settles on the floor next to Magnus. Chairman meow pops out almost immediately and struts over to Alec for some fuss, he clamours over Alec’s lap and begins to inspect the strange man next to him. With a mew he rubs his cheek against Magnus’ hand. Alec watches with fondness as a soft smile spreads across Magnus’ face. He’s not quite sure exactly how long passes where he’s watching the other man, with a dopey smile on his face as Magnus interacts with the cat- who had now curled up content on his lap. Alec is brought back to reality when he feels a soft paw tap his leg. Slowly Alec extends his hand to Church and pets him gently before patting his lap, “feeling brave enough buddy?” His voice is soft and barely above a whisper.

Magnus is careful not to do anything to put Church off; instead he keeps his focus solely on Chairman and watches Church from the corner of his eye. And Alec is impressed, by both the cat and the man next to him, it is very rare that someone comes in that Church even ventures out of the box around, and also that the person then stays calm and passive enough not to scare him straight back into hiding. Church grumbles to himself as he rubs his body across Alec’s back, tail flicking as he eyes the new person next to him. Church settles behind Alec in a sit, ears back still making the odd grumble.

Mindful of his motions, Magnus takes out one of the treats Alec had given him and gives it to Chairman. “If you slowly place one between us, Church might in time decide to be brave enough to get it.”

Magnus nods and speaks softly, “okay.” In a calm and gentle manner Magnus gets out a second treat and gradually moves his arm, he drops the treat as instructed and goes back to fussing Chairman who is contently purring to himself.

After convincing himself that the strange guy next to his surrogate daddy wasn’t an immediate threat, Church crouches down and extends a feeble paw after the treat. Alec smirks and has to suppress a chuckle at the cat’s pathetic attempt. Church dramatically flails across the floor and Alec can keep his laughter in no longer. Magnus chuckles beside him, “you warned me he was grumpy, not that he was dramatic with it as well!”

“Yeah you’re right, I probably should’ve warned you that he’s a bit of a drama queen.” By the end of the session Church had managed to wiggle his way forward enough to just scrape the biscuit before taking himself back to the safety of his basket.

As he returned the cats back to their enclosure Alec felt pleased with how the session had gone but couldn’t help the anxiety that spread through his veins at the conversation to come with Magnus. He really hoped that this guy was willing to put in the effort, Church had been a lot better than Alec could have asked for. But he was realistic, the job had made him that way, it was very rare that someone would want to stick through the process if it meant putting in a bit of hard work and effort initially. He didn’t mean to think bad about a guy he had just met, but it was something he had faced time and time again. And no offence to Magnus, but this would be his first time as a cat owner.

He led Magnus back to the meeting room, “so,” he let out a breath, “what are your thoughts?”

Magnus took a moment to reflect on his thoughts before responding, “I honestly cannot imagine a better fit for me, sure I know it’s going to take a little time and effort on my behalf. But Chairman is very outgoing, like me, and Church has that dramatic flair which my friends would agree is very me. So as long as you’re happy with me; I would love to spend more time in getting to know them.”

Alec’s face lit up, “I am more than happy for you to arrange another meet. Since we won’t need to have a meeting beforehand we can arrange for you to have a full 30 minutes with them if that works for you? If not then just say and we can sort out whatever it is you can do...”

A smirk appears on Magnus’ face as Alec rambles on a bit flustered, noticing this Alec blushes and busies himself getting the diary. “So uh, when are you free?” His eyes go wide as he realises how that came out, “I mean when are you able to next come in?” He fidgets nervously, eyes downcast focusing on the diary.  


“I can do Friday, anytime from 1 really?” he offers.

Alec flicks through the diary, “can either do 1.30 with Jenny, or 3 with me?”

“Well I certainly wouldn’t want to miss another opportunity to spend time with you,” he winks.

Alec splutters slightly at the flirtiness before managing to compose himself. “Great, look forward to seeing you Friday.” He puts his work head back on and adds, “thank you for coming today and giving Church a chance.”

“Pleasure was all mine.” Alec hands Magnus a card with the appointment time and the number to contact if plans change before walking him to the door. As they part ways Alec can’t help but to have a lingering look at his retreating form. He feels a blush creep back up to his face and shakes it off. This was not the time nor place for those kind of thoughts. After writing up a quick report about how the meeting session went he heads back to the dog section, but finds himself more distracted than normal. 

There was something about Magnus that had managed to captivate him, and Church’s response to the man was a sign that there was something special about him. In both of the previous interests in Church he had failed to come out of the box for more than a second. Sure, it could be a sign that Alec’s work with Church had been having an impact, but Alec felt it more likely that there was something about Magnus that drew individuals toward him, almost like magic. 

But Alec didn’t really believe in magic, fate or even destiny. Things just either happened, or didn’t happen. And he couldn’t deny the happiness creeping through him at the prospect of getting to spend more time with Magnus. And Alec was going to try his damndest to not let any emotions get in the way; this is the best prospective home Church has ever had, and he was not going to be the reason for it failing. He would stick to being professional and hope that he can form coherent sentences without tripping over his words. But that was Friday’s problem, for now he had dogs to look after and take his mind off of it.

 


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Huge thank you to everyone that gave kudos/commented on the first chapter, I hope you like the update.

Magnus drove home with a small smile on his face, something really felt right today, from the brief interaction with Church to having Chairman Meow curled up on his lap. And as for meeting someone as alluring as Alec, that was a bonus he hadn’t counted for. A bonus doubled by the opportunity to see him again. It was a good thing that Magnus loved a challenge, because both Church and Alec alike seemed to have strong guards up. And Magnus intended on breaking through both of their defence walls, he couldn’t help it, something was drawing Magnus towards Alec, something intriguing, different and only a little terrifying. And for the first time in a while, Magnus had something to truly look forward to, a priority to focus on.

 

Even though there had been minimal contact with Church, he knew that there was something special about him- something inside that Magnus could relate to, an unspoken trauma that made them perfect for each other. And as for his adorable friend, he was like the other side to Magnus’ personality. The fun-loving social butterfly; the reason he had brought a bar with his best friend. As he pulled up into his driveway Magnus had made his mind up, the two cats were perfect for him and he was going to make sure that he did everything right for them; starting by researching into nervous cats. The last thing he wanted to do was anything that set Church back and threatened to ruin his chances of bonding with the feline.

 

As he entered his apartment he started mental notes about what he could do to make the place more cat friendly- now that he had the cats personalities in mind. Truth be told until meeting Alec and talking about the duo Magnus had somewhat been lacking in enthusiasm for taking on the responsibility of owning a pet, but now that there was a thread of excitement entwined within the anxiety and apprehension.

 

Magnus flops down onto his sofa and switches on his laptop. He starts by looking through forums discussing anxious cats but soon ends up beginning to get distracted. Before long he has ordered a multitude of cat accessories. Magnus knew that he was being a little too spontaneous, there was no guarantee that he was definitely going to be adopting Church and Chairman Meow, or any cat from Starkweather rescue- he was realistic like that. But he had made up his mind that he was going to try his damndest to give Church and Chairman the best life that they deserve, and that was that as far as Magnus was concerned. Besides, a cat like Church would be a good excuse to overcome some of his own problems. They could heal and grow together. That is what his therapist wanted after all. That’s why he had even applied to adopt from the shelter.

 

After spending a little more money than totally necessary Magnus sets his laptop aside and stretches his back out, He had spent the best part of an hour and a half hunched over the laptop screen- his back protested at the sudden movement. He groans at the clock before deciding that he did just about have enough time to shower before going to work.

                                                                                           

Magnus had barely chance to sit back in his chair when his business partner comes barging into his office, standing on the other side of his desk, arms folded expectantly. “You better have a good explanation for ignoring my messages all morning!”

 

Magnus’ eyes widen in sudden realisation, “I am so sorry I must’ve forgot to turn my phone back on after the meeting.” He immediately pulls his phone out of his pocket and switches it back on. “I didn’t want it going off and causing a problem.”

 

Ragnor shakes his head, “did it all go okay?”

 

Magnus face lights up, “yeah, I think it went quite well. But that’s all I’m going to say for now,” he winks before turning his attention back to his phone, scrolling through the missed messages. Upon hearing the scraping of a chair Magnus looks up to find Ragnor looking bored waiting for Magnus to catch up.

 

“Did you really send me ten messages moaning about how many theme nights we have coming up?”

 

Ragnor gives him a serious look, “I do not understand why it is you think we could possibly benefit from having four events in one month, surely that’s a little overkill even for you?”

 

“Oh my dear friend, I do not expect you to understand these things,” Magnus gesticulates as he speaks before throwing open one of his draws and reaching into it. “This is all the details you’ll need to know in order to advertise the first one.”

 

Ragnor takes the piece of paper and skims through it, “why must I be the one to advertise this? It your idea and quite frankly when I said I would be your partner I did not sign up for this!”

 

Magnus shoots him his best pleading eyes, “no but you did say that you would help me in any way that you could.” Magnus pulls out some more papers from his draw, “plus this way we can save on costs and not need to hire someone for advertising.” He rearranges the papers and hands them to Ragnor, “and this theme is dedicated to you...”

 

As Ragnor takes the paper his face morphs from serious to happy as he reads what Magnus had planned. “Now this, this I can do.” He flicks through the other event briefs before standing up, “well I best get on then, and I swear Bane that you better respond to me emails if I need help with any of this nonsense!”

                                                                                           

## ***

 

“That bloody cat of yours!” Alec raises his eyebrows as Maia enters the staff room and flops down opposite him in a huff.

 

“What?”

 

“Church!”

 

“Oh,” realisation dawns upon Alec face, “how bad?”

 

Maia raises her bandaged hand up, “I’m not wearing this for fun!”

 

Alec sighs, “what happened?”

 

“Well Alarick needed a hand cleaning them out, and you know how much Church just _loves_ me! So I opened the door to take out the litter tray and the second my hand when in there he recoiled, hissed and when I made a grab for the tray he pounced!” Alec had to suppress a laugh, he knew it was unprofessionally funny, but damn that cat knew when he didn’t like someone! Maia wasn’t much of a cat person to begin with; she much preferred to work with the dogs, tended to get along better with them. “It’s not funny Alec! Your cat savaged me!”

 

“I think you’re exaggerating a little!”

 

Maia manages to hold her serious facade for a few seconds before it cracks. “Yeah but you know how easy I am to bleed, it looked like he had savaged me! In reality it’s just a couple of scratches. And anyway from what I hear, we might get to see the back of the adorable little git soon with any luck?”

 

Alec nods, “let’s hope so, Church seemed to like the guy, it’s just whether he is prepared for living with such a diva.”

 

“Well from what I hear, the two would be pretty well matched....” Maia comments under her breath.

 

Alec cocks his head, “what do you mean by that?”

 

Maia rolls her eyes, “right yeah sorry I forget that I’m talking to Mr boring no-life-outside-of-work here!” Alec shakes his head in amusement at the comment- she wasn’t exactly wrong, he didn’t go out unless he was forced to. “Magnus Bane, you have seriously never heard that name before?”

 

Alec thinks for a second, “No, should I?”

 

“Well he only owns half of Pandemonium, isn’t that where your sister spends half her time?”

 

“I wouldn’t say half, but huh...would never have guessed that if you had seen him in the introduction. He was very calm and careful with his movements.” Alec takes a sip of his coffee, “but then again that does explain some of his behaviour,” he adds half mumbling.

 

“So you really think the boys could have a shot with him then?”

 

Alec smiles, glad that Maia seemed to ignore his latter comment. “Yeah, I honestly do think that he could be in for a ‘shot’.”

 

“And if not, with any luck I will be able to go back to being permanently with the dogs!”

 

They both chuckle, “for the sanity of the cats more than anything!” Alec can’t help but to add.

 

“Hey!” Maia taps him on the arm in mock offence.

 

Alec holds his hands up, “you know it’s true.”

 

“Yeah,” Maia concedes.

 

Alec finishes the rest of his drink and wishes Maia luck with the rest of her cattery shift. Alec can’t help but be glad that he is on a set rotation, two days on dogs, three days on cats- the best of both worlds.

 

As Alec heads back to the kennels he finds his mind wandering back to Mr Bane, he couldn’t help it. It was frustrating really, how often he had to scold himself from letting his mind wonder. For one, there was no way he should be having those kinds of thoughts towards a potential adopter, and secondly, there was no way that a man like Magnus would be single, let alone interested in Alec. His biggest problem was the urge he had to find out more about Magnus. He wanted to get to know how. Before he had chance to audibly groan at himself he spots his boss walking over to meet him. “What’s the plan?”

 

Hodge hands him a clipboard, “Raj asked if he could team up with you to work on Pasha and Rudi?”

 

Alec smiled, “I would love to help with that,” he skims the list reading his other dogs to walk and jobs to do for the afternoon. “This all seems good to me. Do you know where Raj is right now?” Hodge just points to one of the kennel blocks before taking back his clipboard and striding off.

 

It doesn’t take Alec long to find Raj at the far end of the block cutting up some high-value reward treats- otherwise known as hot dogs. “Hey, so what’s the plan for Rudi and Pash?”

 

“I thought that if you head up the old path with Pash, I will follow at a distance with Rudi and we can see how close we can get them whilst keeping them both below threshold.”

 

“Sounds good; I shall go grab some treat and get Pasha ready; I’ll leave in about 5 minutes if that’s okay with you”?

 

Raj nods, “it’s a plan!” after obtaining some treats Alec suits Pasha up with a harness and slip lead- being a shar-pei it was difficult finding equipment that could stay on him should something happen to cause Pasha to act out and take off. “Right then boy, I need you to be on your best behaviour for this walk, can you do that for me buddy?” He pats the fawn dogs head and gets a blue tongue attacking his cheek in response. “I take that as a yes,” Alec chuckles.

 

As he heads out onto the path Alec finds himself confiding in the dog. “Wanna hear my problems?” Alec signs; Pasha looks up at him briefly before continuing about his business sniffing along the grass verge to the side. “You see there’s this person that since I’ve met him, I just can’t stop thinking about him.” Alec licks his lips anxiously, “his eyes, the way he smiles, the soft sound of his voice,” talking about Magnus causes a soft smile to don his lips. “And it’s stupid because I have only met the guy for a few minutes and somehow he has had this lasting impression on me.” Alec shoots a look back to see how far away Raj was with their second most dog aggressive dog. A medium black and white scruffy collie cross terrier. Satisfied that they were still out of hearing range he turns back to Pasha. “I’m being stupid right? There’s no way I can initiate anything with him, at least not while he’s interesting in adopting, that would be unprofessional!” Alec gives Pasha a treat as he looks back towards Rudi followed by a calming shake. “Thanks for listening boy.”

By the end of the walk both Alec and Raj had been happy with the end result. Even though the dogs hadn’t quite managed to progress to being side by side, Rudi was walking totally relaxed only a few paces back.

 

As the end of the day hit Alec was well and truly exhausted; he had never been more thankful for it. Because as his head hit the pillow he managed to fall asleep instead of fretting over meeting Magnus again the next day, but it didn’t take too long for the anxieties to creep into his dreams.

 

## ***

 

Magnus swings his car into the parking lot and parks up. His leg jittering nervously as he checks his hair and makeup in the mirror- perfect as always. His fiddles with his ear cuff in anxiety as he exits the car. By the time he reaches the doors to the reception his confident facade is firmly in place. He greets the receptionist, _Jade-_ he reads, with a warm smile. “Hello, Mr Bane here for a second meeting.”

 

Jade returns his warming gesture, “okay Mr Bane, please take a seat and Alec will be with you shortly.” Magnus nods his thanks as he turns to take a seat. Magnus’ mind a rush of questions and emotions; while his exterior portrays him as being cool and calm.

 

Before long he spots a familiar form walking towards him. Magnus rises from his seat to greet Alec. He takes Alec’s outstretched hand in a firm shake. “Mr Bane it’s nice to see you again.”

 

“The pleasure is mine,” Magnus winks. “And please call me Magnus.” He notices a slight blush creep across Alec’s cheeks, _interesting._

 

“I...if you would like to follow me.” Alec clears his throat as Magnus eyes are briefly distracted by Alec’s gesturing hand before returning his gaze back to Alec’s alluring eyes. “I have a room already set up.”

 

Magnus follows Alec down the corridor to a room marked ‘B’ with an ‘in-use’ sign on it. He gratefully accepts the door being held open for him. Upon entering the room Magnus immediately spots Church curl defensively on one of the sofas. Remembering what he had been reading up on Magnus ensures to avert his gaze and not make eye contact, he didn’t want to make Church feel threatened so early on. The second thing that then takes Magnus’ attention is Chairman Meow greeting him by rubbing his body against his legs, his tail curling round his leg in a hug. Unsure of the correct way to react he smiles fondly at the cat; he carefully manoeuvres around him to join Alec sitting on a rug near the sofa currently inhabited by Church.

 

Magnus crosses his legs and places his hands on his knees. He then turns to the man next to him, determined to try to get to know Alec. Magnus had picked up on Alec’s nervous body language, the way his fingers were toying with his walkie holder. How Alec kept flicking his tongue across his bottom lip. “I have to say, you’re looking much more presentable today,” Magnus quips. Smirking as Alec tries to not look flustered.

 

“Yeah... you’re looking much more...” Alec gestures with his hands towards Magnus hands and face, motioning towards his jewellery and makeup.

 

“Elaborate?” Magnus suggests.

 

“I was going to say elegant, but sure...”

 

“Uh huh,“ Magnus smiles, which immediately widens upon it being met by Alec. Something nudging at his hand pulls Magnus’ gaze from Alec. Chairman Meow was doing his best to get some attention and Magnus was more than willing to oblige. The chirrup from Chairman causes Magnus’ heart to melt a little. As the cat settles on his lap, Magnus weighs up how to start a conversation. He decides to go for something superficial and work his way to being more personal. “So, have you been working here long?”

 

“A few years; started when I was just finishing NYU.”

 

Magnus raises his eyebrows impressed, “what did you study there?”

 

“Major in psychology and minor in animal science, hence working here.” Magnus watches with intrigue as Alec pats the rug next to him and coaxes Church over.

 

“That sounds interesting,” Magnus ensures to keep his voice soft and quiet. “What made you want to major in psychology?”

 

“I’m not sure...” Alec shrugs, Magnus was thankful that Alec’s attention was on Church so that he couldn’t pick up on Magnus staring just a little too long. But Magnus can’t help himself. His eyes track all the lines and feature of the man beside him and can only come to one conclusion- that Alec is utterly beautiful. And from the little he had managed to gauge, he was sure that Alec’s personality matched his exterior.

 

With genuine curiosity Magnus watches as Church greets Alec in a slightly calmer way to how Chairman had recently greeted him. Magnus noted that it wasn’t that Church was adverse to affection, he seemed to be quite enjoying how Alec was stroking him, but rather that Church was more reserved and timid where it came to intimacy. Magnus feels a surge of respect towards Alec at the level of trust he had managed to obtain. Watching the two interact together made it clear to Magnus the strength of the bond that had formed between the two. This made him even more thankful that it was Alec he had for his first two introductions, he wasn’t sure if it had been someone whom Church was less comfortable around, that he would’ve had the chance to not only see the level of potential but also have had such positive meetings.

 

“You own the Pandemonium club not far from here right?”

 

“Half own, but yes guilty.”

 

“My sister keeps trying to get me to go with her, something about an event next week that I have to go to.”

 

“You should come, first drink on me,” Magnus winks, hoping the subtleness wasn’t lost of what Magnus was trying to imply- that he would like to see Alec outside of work. He was intrigued to see how less guarded Alec would be without being in his professional environment. Alec didn’t seem to be offended by any of Magnus’ slight attempts of flirting- something that gave Magnus hope.

 

“Uh, thanks...It’s not really my usual thing- which is why Maia had to tell me who you were because I had no clue.”

 

“That’s not a bad thing, means you had no expectations.”

 

“to be totally honest, the reaction of these guys says more to me than anything else.” Alec positions his body more towards Magnus. “Are you willing to try something?”

 

A slight feeling of anxiety sweeps across Magnus, but the curiosity ultimately wins. “Okay...”

 

Alec pulls something out of his pocket. “I’m a little more prepared this time, I’ve brought Church’s favourite treat and I’m hoping that we can get him to actually take one from you.”

 

Magnus nods, “okay just tell me what you need me to do.” Alec explains his plan in order to gently ease Church to the idea of firstly getting closer to Magnus, and secondly accepting a treat off of him.

 

The result was something Alec could have wished to occur. With Chairman happily curled up on Alec’s lap, Church had moved closer to Magnus and not only accepted a treat but rubbed his scent onto Magnus’ leg before crouching down between the two men, where he currently rests.

 

During the process Magnus had managed to find out more information about Alec. And the more they spoke, the more Magnus wanted to see Alec again- only in more mutual territory. And he couldn’t help but notice the spark in Alec’s eyes whenever he was talking about his family; it evoked a feeling deep within Magnus that he feared he would never have glimpsed again.

 

All to soon the end of the session comes around. Magnus tries to hide his disappointment as Alec checks the time and sighs, signalling that he too knew it was the end. “Well, I should probably get these two back.” Magnus makes a noise of agreement as he watches Church begun scent rubbing against him. “So ...err... they seem to be accepting you, have you decided if they are for you?”

 

Magnus face lights up, “I would very much like to take them on, but not until Church is ready of course.”

 

“Great, “Alec smiles, temporarily distracting Magnus. “Well I don’t think it will be that long before Church will be accepting enough to go home with you.” Alec carefully lifts Chairman as he stands up and places him in a carrier. “You ready to go back Mr?” Church dramatically flops to his side and yowls in response to Alec. Magnus watches with amusement as the two interact. Alec raises his eyebrows, “I don’t think you need to be quite that dramatic!”

 

After a few minutes of Alec persuading Church that he did indeed want to get in the basket, Alec had left the room in order to return the cats. Magnus toys with his rings as he waits for Alec’s return; which doesn’t take long.

 

“Okay so, when can you make another visit?” Alec opens the diary he had obtained on his way back.

 

Magnus takes a moment to think, “Monday?”

 

“Okay....let’s see what we have,” he flicks through the book to land on Monday’s. “Morning or afternoon best?”

 

“Late morning?” Magnus offers.

 

“Okay I will put you in for Monday at 11.30, you will be with Lizzy.”

 

Magnus pouts, “you mean I won’t get another enjoyable session with you?”

 

Alec chuckles; blushing slightly. “Unfortunately Monday is my day off.” He closes the book and looks directly at Magnus. The eye contact makes Magnus’ pulse increase and he has to use all his willpower to keep a professional front. “Do you have any questions about anything before you go?”

 

_Yes, are you free later,_ Magnus mentally scolds himself for being so distracted. “There was one thing, I was wondering if it would help if I brought something in with my scent on it to go in their room?”

 

“That would be great; I would suggest sleeping with the item for a couple of nights. You can drop it into reception at anytime.”

 

Magnus nods, “wonderful, I best leave you to your work then.” He follows Alec back to reception and with a last minute surge of bravery he turns back to face Alec just before entering. “Oh one last thing,” he rifles through his pockets for his notepad. After scrawling on a bit of paper he hands it to Alec. “If you do decide to come next week, give this to Raphael on the door,” with a wink Magnus leaves a stunned Alec.

 

 

\------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Incase anyone was interested here are pictures of Pasha and Rudi (dogs I have worked with in rescue) 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you so much for reading.


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So sorry for the delay in updating, real life can be such a pain sometimes! I hope you enjoy the update.

Alec fights hard to suppress a grin as he scrawls the word ‘reserved’ across the enclosure housing Church and Chairman meow.

“Oh my god! Are you serious!?” Lizzy all but shrieks as she comes up behind him. Alec breaks into a grin and before he can say anything she throws her arms around him. “This is amazing!”

Alec breaks out into a grin as they break apart, “yeah, it really is!” 

“Have you told Maia yet?”

“No, not seen her yet. She’s going to be so pleased to see them go!” 

“Yeah, she’ll probably be planning a party celebrating not having to deal with Church anymore.” Alec hums in agreement. “How about you? I know you’re close to them, will you be sad to see them go?”

“I will miss them, of course I will. But they need to be in a home and honestly I really think that they will be well looked after can cared for where they’re going.” A dreamy look covers Alec’s face as he thinks about Magnus. “I am so pleased that they are getting the chance that they deserve. I couldn’t wish for better for them.”

“Well if you approve of the person then they must be going somewhere good!”

Alec chuckles, “funny you should say that...the next meeting I have scheduled for Monday morning with you. So you can see for yourself”

“Awesome, anything I need to know?”

“Church has started to want to interact and go over to him, and he’s definitely not the type of person that will push the cats, so I suggest that you get them all settled in the room together and then maybe leave them to it for a bit?”

Lizzy nods, “Can certainly do that.”

Alec says the next sentence at a pace before walking away from any potential questions, “it also happens to be Magnus Bane the owner of Pandemonium.” 

 

***

Entering the staff room Alec turns on the coffee machine; he gets his lunch out of the fridge before pouring his coffee. Just as he sits down Maia enters the room. “Hey Alec,” she greets him with a bright smile as she gets herself a hot beverage, before joining him at the table with her lunch. 

“Hey Maia, you okay?” 

“Yeah, it’s been an alright morning. Yourself?” 

“No complaints, there is something I have to tell you though…” Alec has a serious face. 

“Oh really, what?” Concern tinged Maia’s words. 

“Chairman and Church had another meeting today…”

“Go on…” Maia leans forward in her chair intrigued, trying to gauge a reaction from Alec’s neutral expression. 

“You’re going to have to put up with them a bit longer,” Alec’s face sollom. 

“Oh,” her face visibly dropped. 

“Because you know I can’t let my boys go unless I’m 100% certain that they have bonded to their new daddy,” Alec breaks into a smile, “but they are on reserve and will be going as soon as we feel that they are ready!”

“Are you serious!?” Maia shrieks. She bats him on the arm, “don’t wind me up like that Lightwood!” 

Alec chuckles and Maia soon joins in, “I can’t believe how well Church has been responding to him. I knew that someone else would be able to see him the way I do if they just gave him a chance!”

Maia snorts, “Only if they are one of the lucky ones! But still, I am so pleased that they have found a home!” 

Alec nods, “there is one thing, Magnus is going to be bringing in something with his scent on to go in their room, if I’m off can you make sure that they get it please?” 

“No problem, and ‘Magnus’ is it now?” Maia winks teasingly. 

Alec blushes and puts his head down to focus on his lunch, toying with his food, “I don’t know what you’re getting at.”

“Sure you don’t…” Maia just grins and revels in the joy of getting pay back for his little wind up game. 

As they have lunch Maia is gracious to lay off the teasing until the end; causing Alec to be a blushing mess as he heads back onto his section. 

 

***

Straight from work Alec heads home to shower; he changes into some plain comfortable clothes and with a mournful look round his apartment he leaves. He loved his sister, and he knew that when he got to hers he would enjoy being there and not regret going. But work had been full on all week and he feels as though he had hardly stepped foot into his apartment these past few days. With a sigh he locks up and walks towards his sister’s only a few blocks away. 

By the time he arrives at his sister’s place his body has completely devoid of the days; stress. He knocks on the door before letting himself in. He barely has chance to step into the room before his sister has captured him in a loving embrace. “I’m so glad you didn’t bail on me again!”

“Hey, I’m sorry about last week but I couldn’t help it. You know that.”

“I know, but you work too much!” They settle on the sofa, Izzy tucking her legs underneath herself, sitting sideways across the couch so that she can face her brother, a pout donning her face. 

“Yes but…” Alec flicks his tongue across his bottom lip , “I can guarantee you entry to that club event you wanted to drag me to next week!”

Izzys face lights up with excitement, “really, how?!”

“Well, I’ve been introducing Church and Chairman Meow to a potential new owner who just so happens to be Magnus Bane…” Alec waits for his sisters display of joy and excitement to calm before he continues. “And he asked me to come next week, he has given me a note to give to the doorman so that I can cut the que.”

“This is amazing! I can’t believe that you’ve been in the same room as Magnus Bane! You have to tell me everything! What is he like? What was he wearing? I need info!” Izzy gushes.

Alec rolls his eyes and allows his sister to calm down. He wasn’t sure how to describe Magnus other than  _ breathtakingly handsome _ , and while he had come out to his sister a little while ago, he just wasn’t comfortable talking about his crush with her. Alec mentally scolds himself for admitting to having a crush; but he knew that by this point denial was futile. Besides, it’s not like it meant anything anyway, right? Nothing would happen between them; but that didn’t stop the butterflies from fluttering in his stomach at the idea something could actually happen with Magnus. Alec shakes his head to clear the inappropriate thoughts and turns his attention towards Izzy who is impatiently waiting for some sort of answer. “He seems to be a confident, yet kind and caring guy. I’m not the best judge of fashion. “ Alec gestures to his attire and gets a nod of agreement from Izzy, “but he certainly seemed stylish to me. Plus he had some fo the girls at work swooning over him.”

“Just the girls?” Izzy waggles her eyebrows suggestively causing Alec to blush. 

“I...I don’t know what you’re t-talking about.” He shifts uncomfortable in his seat. 

Izzy chuckles, “big brother you are far too easy to tease!” Not wanting to make Alec too uncomfortable she knows to change the conversation slightly. “But the theme is magic so we really need to discuss what you’re going to wear.”

Alec groans, “seriously?” 

Izzy smirks, “of course, I will be taking you out shopping on Tuesday!” Alec’s groan get louder and the throws his head back and slumps in defeat. 

“Fine, but nothing too sparkly!”

“I’m not making any promises!” Alec rolls his eyes in brotherly fashion.

Their conversation falls into a catch up of what has happened in their respective lives since they last saw each other a couple of weeks ago. Complete with funny anecdotes, sibling banter and emotional support. Somehow Izzy managed to refrain from teasing her brother over Magnus, but she does ensure that they secure arrangements for the event and more importantly when they are going shopping to get their outfits. Before it gets chance to get late Alec says his goodbyes and heads home, having to be up early for work the next day- not everyone got to have weekends off work. As requested he shoots Izzy a text that he got home safe before almost falling into bed and straight to sleep. 

 

***

Pleased with himself Magnus hums his way back to his car. Ignition on he selects an upbeat playlist before driving to work. A smile creeping onto his face at the prospect of seeing Alec outside of work. As much as he would love to deny it, there had been a connection between them, and he couldn’t remember the last time he had smiled without it being forced. He finds himself distracted by thoughts of Alec almost the entire drive and has to take a moment upon parking to compose himself in a work frame of mind. 

With a final check on his appearance he heads into the club; ready to put on a spectacular event. He heads into his office and is not shocked to see that Ragnor is already there, despite the meeting not being for another twenty minutes. “You seem in a good mood,” Ragnor comments as he puts down the notepad he had been jotting on. 

“What can I say, I live to torture you with cheesy events,” Magnus retorts with a wink. 

“And don’t I know it.” He rubs his temples as if soothing a headache.

“Still anything is better than that hideous valentines event from last year,” Ragnor shudders at the memory. 

“You know me, I’m a romantic at heart.” Magnus places a hand over his heart to emphasise the point. “But even you have to admit that you fitted the grinch role at the christmas event spectacularly!” He gesticulates with his hands as he speaks, “And you cannot deny how much fun you had at the last halloween party. Especially when…” Ragnor thanks every deity that Magnus is interrupted from finishing that anecdote by a knock at the door, he lets out a sigh of relief as Magnus politely invites them in. Raphael, head of security enters with his usual serious look donning his face. 

Magnus face softens ever so slightly as he greets Raphael; Ragnor just shoots him a thankful look for saving him. Magnus gestures for Raphael to take a seat. “Magnus, Ragnor,” Raphael nods to each man in greeting. 

“Raphael, can you please tell Magnus that I am not the only one who thinks that this amount of events in one month is a bit overkill?”

“Ragnor has a point, it is a bit much,” Ragnor shoots a look at Magnus. “But then on the other hand think of the business it can bring. Hopefully all the torture we are being put through will pay off at the end of it!” 

This causes Ragnor’s face to drop, “he’s even managed to get to you!”

Magnus smiles triumphantly, “nonsense, Raphael just has good business sense!” 

“My issue is more with the themes you have gone with….don’t you think that next weeks is a bit….”

“Stupid? Utterly ridiculous? Impossible?” Ragnor offers. 

“Hush, it’s different. And that is what will draw people through the door- curiosity!” Raphael rolls his eyes but at the same time is able to see the other mans logic, and truth be told Ragnor can as well, he just wasn’t going to admit it, much less to Magnus. He had a grumpy reputation to uphold! 

Over the next few minutes they are joined by the rest of the core staff. Clapping his hands together Magnus gets their attention and begins to brief them. “Okay so here we have the floor designs for the decor,” he hands out some storyboards to circulate. “I want each of you to take charge over one section. Ragnor will be running a demo in half of the special horror themed cocktails we will be serving tonight. Meliorn, Kaelie you will be primary bar staff so it is important that you perfect them,” they each nod in understanding. “Dot, Rufus you will be in charge of floor circulation and ensuring to keep the tone of the party thriving.” 

“Dot we would like it if you can bring some psychological horror to things, once we’ve wrapped up here I’ll go through some ideas with you,” Ragnor interjects. 

“Great,” Dot’s face lights up at the prospect. 

“And last, but certainly not least,” Magnus turns to face Raphael directly. “Doors open at seven, I want you out there no longer than half eight, then I want you to leave your team to it and buddy up with Rufus. That okay?”

“Yeah, my team are more than capable at handling things on their own. But I warn you, I want no part in the next event. From what I’ve heard it’s far too happy to suit me.”

Magnus chuckles nodding, “Noted. And with that you are dismissed. Let’s get this place set up!” 

Looking around the room Magnus can’t help but feel pride at his work. The room was decorated to perfection, the first of his event nights was minutes away from doors opening.The theme of horror had been selected first, figuring that one would draw more people in and hopefully encourage them to return for the three to follow.  

At the end of the evening Magnus goes home on a high, the event had been an amazing success and he could not wait for the next one. He had even had a conversation with someone he strongly suspected to be Alec’s sister. Magnus was just hoping that Alec would make an appearance at the next event. He drifts to sleep thoughts occupied by what Alec would look like out of his work attire, inhibitions lost enjoying the music. 

***

Letting out a deep breath, Magnus straightens his jacket and prepares himself to enter the building before him. He presses the buzzer, a grainy voice erupts out of the speaker, “ _ hello, please state your name and reason for visit.” _

“Mr Bane, 10 o’clock appointment with Mrs Blackthorn.” The door releases with a loud buzz, Magnus makes his way through the all too familiar building to the office of Helen Blackthorn. He takes a seat on one of the chairs outside knowing that she would be out as soon as she was ready for him; his leg gittering anxiously.

Before Magnus had chance to chew too far into his lip Helen greets him and shows him into her office. “Hello Magnus, how are you today?”

Magnus smiles at her, “I’m doing good today thank you, yourself?” 

“I’m very well thank you,” Helen smiles warmly at him. She had been his therapist for a couple of years now and as a result they had got to be comfortable around each other. Magnus had dreaded finding a therapist, but in Helen he had got the jackpot in getting what he needed. 

“I decided to take you up on the advice of getting a pet, you were right my apartment being so empty every time I get home really wasn’t helping.” Helen notices as Magnus idly fiddles with his fingers. 

“That’s great, so what have you chosen?” She leans slightly forward, interested to hear the information that Magnus had offered to share. 

“I decide that a cat would be the best suit of my needs and lifestyle. I went down to the shelter and have decided on a duo which have been having a hard time to get rehomed.” 

“Oh?” she raises a quizzical eyebrow,

“While one of them is a ‘perfect social butterfly’,” they both roll their eyes at the use of the label,  “his partner is much more reserved and fiesty. I figured that there is something I can relate to in both of them and found it perfect that we can all heal together.” Magnus’ face lights up as he speaks about Church and Chairman. 

“That’s great, when do you take them home?”

“I have my third visit with them today, depending on how that goes Alec thinks I could have them by the end of next week if I am able to visit every couple of days or so.” Magnus smile widens. “Just the idea of getting to bring them home has really helped, I thought that I would make me anxious about taking on the responsibility but I hadn’t counted on how much I would be excited and looking forward to bringing in new members to my family. Almost everything I need for them should be arriving today and then I can ensure that I am totally ready for them.”

“That’s good that you are feeling well prepared and organising everything that is needed.” 

The session then steers more towards the steps for improvement Magnus had manage to achieve not only from the last session but as a whole from the start of the year. He hadn’t realised just quite how far he had managed to come and felt a surge of pride at his accomplishments. For example he had gone from slinking in the shadows against the walls on the floor of his club, to actually being able to work behind the bar and enjoy it. The rush of anxiety changing into excitement as he interacts with his customers. And other small steps, that even though they might not seem so big, they are just as important. 

The next things to work on were easy to set, a huge focus on him taking on the responsibility of being a pet owner to not one but two cats. And ensuring that he keeps positive throughout the experience and doesn’t let the negativity draw him in. 

With his new homework for the fortnight set Magnus heads home for a quick coffee and gets himself ready. However, he finds himself frozen to the sofa, was he really doing the right thing? There were days he could barely look after himself, how would he manage looking after two cats? And more to the point, was it fair on them? He feels the anxiety build and swirl around, negative thoughts coupled with dizziness, feeling as though his heart was going to break out of his chest and difficulty in breathing. He closes his eyes and focuses on the motions of breathing, slowly drawing a deep breath in, holding it, and slowly releasing. As his senses return, Magnus pulls out his phone and looks at a picture of the cats. He smiles softly to himself and knows that they would be the best things to happen to him. The episode was just a scar rippled from the injuries of his past. He could do this, he  _ wanted  _ to do this. And he was now strong enough to make it through the other side of his anxiety. 

Magnus channels the emotional turmoil into something much more useful, he does a bit more background reading and ensure that he is fully prepared with what he needs, where it should go and the best ways to settle cats into a new home. He ends up rushing over to the shelter for the meeting as he ended up checking three times that he was bringing everything that he needed, including some new blankets and treats. 

 

***

Magnus was almost bouncing with excitement as he waited for the receptionist to contact the worker that would be handing his meeting with the cats,  _ his cats. _ A bright, young woman walks over to him and offers a hand in greeting, Magnus takes it without hesitation. “Hi Mr Bane, my name is Lizzy.”

“Hi Lizzy, please call me Magnus.” 

Lizzy smiles at him, “if you would like to follow me, I have them out in the room ready for you. Also Alec said you had asked if we could give you some of their old bedding?” They begin to walk towards the meeting room. 

“Yes, I have ordered some beds and things for them and would like to get their scent on it before they arrive.” 

“That’s fair,” she opens the door and ushers Magnus into the room. “And I have to say, more thoughtful than most!”

“Yeah well, these guys aren’t like most cats, they are special and they deserve the best!”

Lizzy chuckles, “Alec had warned me that you were almost as taken with these two as him.”

Church poked his head out from where he was hiding behind the sofa and mewed loudly upon seeing Magnus. “And hello to you too,” Magnus smiled brightly before making a point of walking in the opposite direction to Church’s hiding place. He settles on the spot he had become accustomed to from the previous visits. 

After getting some attention from Lizzy, Chairman trots over to Magnus and purrs as he rubs his cheek on Magnus’ hand that he had resting on his knee. Lost into his own world focusing on Chairman he hadn’t noticed that Church had crept around the back of the sofa to be closer to Magnus, still with a safe distance but much closer than previous. 

Happy that they were all settled, Lizzy decides to duck out, she could easily see why Alec had approved on Magnus for the boys, it was hard to believe from Church’s reaction that this was only meeting three, it had taken him a lot longer than that to stop running away and being defensive from half the staff. Alec really had done some good work with Church and it was paying off now- she made a mental note to comment about it to him. 

He wasn’t exactly sure how much time had passed before he had noticed that he had been left alone, he was a bit embarrassed for not noticing but he his mind had been on a loop of how lucky he was to get to be the person who would be taking these guys home. “Tell you what boys, a little birdy told me that you both happen to be  partial to one of these,” Magnus pulls out a pouch of treats from his pocket. He hands a couple to Chairman before locating Church with his eyes and throwing some near to his position. After a few seconds hesitation, Church happy tucks in and takes a step forward for more. 

“Not too many, I don’t want to ruin your diet!” Magnus jokes. He places a treat in his palm and slowly stretches his arm along the floor towards Church. His attention firmly on the fussing Chairman as to seem as passive as possible to Church. Within minutes he feels Church’s whiskers tickling his palm as he sniffs the treat. Gobbling it up the cat remains in place, his nose rubs against Magnus hand and before long he rubs his cheek across Magnus thumb a few times. Pleased with himself Church then backs off slightly and sits down, observing Magnus.  

Lizzy comes in at the end of the session to find that Magnus had turned to lean sideways against the sofa, Chairman snuggled comfortable in his lap and Church curled up behind him pressing into his back. “Wow, looks like you got along great this meeting then!”

Magnus shoots her a bright smile, “It’s nice to know that my charm isn’t just restricted to humans,” he winks before turning more serious. “Do you think Alec’s goal of by the end of next week is realistic?” 

“I don’t see why it wouldn’t be, they both have taken a shine to you.”

Magnus break out into a grin, “I cannot wait,” he rubs Chairman under the chin. 

“But until then, you boys need to promise me that you will be on your best behaviour for the staff here, okay?” Magnus places one hand on the floor, ready to brace himself to get up with Chairman in his arms. However before he can, Church darts out a paw and places it firmly on top of Magnus’ hand. “I know, I wish that I could stay here too, but you have to let me go so that I can get everything perfect for you.” Magnus delicately removes his hand before managing to get up without anymore interference from Church. Instead the grumpy persian runs over to the door and hisses. Magnus huffs, “Well that’s not listening when I ask you to behave it is!”

Lizzy watches the scene before her in amusement. Any doubt about them being a match was a distant memory, there was no doubt in how perfectly matched they were. But knowing that they had other viewings booked she knew that she had to intervene. “You okay putting Chairman into that box?” 

Magnus nods, “sure,” and follows through with the request while Lizzy has the harder task of securing Church away. Magnus manages to book another visit for Wednesday, he hadn’t been told who with but he hoped it could be Alec. 

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you for reading, I will post the next instalment soon.


End file.
